Good find! Would love to get one of these DTs at 42 or 59, and then take a swing on another in 6th or 7th Rd. With how hurt our OL was last year, I'd love to build extra depth on DL this year.
Maybe there is still a chance that the Texans go back into the first round, but if they don't... totally would be ok with BPA with 42 (would prefer best available CB) and draft Fiske with 59. Shall see. Overall the Texans have done well in building something that can compete with some of the best teams in the NFL.
The article is really interesting. It goes into depth about instant impact, development, peaks, and washout rates. One explanation it gave for safeties was this.... "Hazarding a guess, teams overdraft athleticism at the safety position. They tend to "swim" as rookies, fly all over the field as sophomores and then opposing quarterbacks figure them out. An alternative theory: Defensive coordinators gradually put more responsibility on the shoulders of safeties who show well early on, meaning their statistics plummet as they play within the defense. Maybe it's a little of both."
I'm currently enamored with swing Edge players who can move inside. Darius Robinson is 285/291 as an Edge who might be able to swing between DE and DT like Autry. Any thoughts on this concept variation? How do you project an inside move like that beyond the weight since maintaining the rushing lanes is important?
Would you consider this a successful draft? 42.T'Vondre Sweat DT Texas 59.Ja'Lynn Polk WR Washington 86.Brandon Dorlus EDGE Oregon 123.Mason McCormick OG South Dakota State 127.Theo Johnson TE Penn State
The knock on Sweat is that he's not much of a pass-rush threat. I also wonder if he's just too big. He might be a bust. Of course that's true of anybody but I would pass.
Everyone on the Dline doesn't have to be great pass rushers. What he lacks as a pass rusher, he makes up for by getting his hands up to knock down passes. I'll take that. He's also good in run defense which Demeco really puts an emphases on. You also need guys too eat up blocks and with his big body, he'll do just that. I love T'Vondre Sweat.
Like the others said, the plus is he is MASSIVE. He will command double-team blocks while freeing up opportunities for surrounding playmakers to hunt quarterbacks, and we've got some quarterback hunters frothing at the mouth to put on that sack attack.
I like Darius Robinson to provide depth at DE and to possibly start at DT. I also think DT Kris Jenkins will be a solid DT that we can get. After that, we need a quality third receiver to start. I also believe that we need a quality 4th receiver to provide depth when one of the others is injured. And I would like to draft another RB. So this is who I took using PFF's mock draft simulator.
His role has been to clog the middle, but also to free up the linebackers by moving the line into the backfield or at least holding his own at the line of scrimmage while taking on a double team freeing up the edge rushers.
Demeco is going into his second year and will begin adjusting the defense to his vision rather than finding players who fit the system he has worked with. Swarm works with good LBs and juice. A penetrating DL can make their job easier.
This is why I hope Caserio drafts Sweat or Fiske and P.Wilson. The front 7 would be nothing but Swarm.
MB, Personally, I like having versatility at all positions. Guys like Autry are valuable because of their ability to play/attack from multiple positions. Projecting has a lot to do with guy's technique (feet, hand use, etc.), strength, explosiveness, experience, and scheme adaptation (a very underrated trait). This is why it's important to have a really good scouting staff and for them to have great relationships with the coaches and an understanding of scheme, desired traits, etc. Robinson appears to have the skills to be able to go DT or DE in a 4-3, but he also looks perfect to be a 3-4 DE. The latter might be his best overall scheme fit. With that said, I've been enamored by Byron Murphy who is probably a lock to go in Top 20. While there is a lot of love for Sweat on this board, I think guys like Newton, Hall and Fiske would be our targets at 42 if we go DT. While Cas talked about trading up to RD1, I could also see us moving up with #59 and getting a DL and WR in Top 50. I see some real value in 30-50 as I've said before.
